Saturday, April 14, 2012

Hello and welcome to issue #1215 of Edi's Weekend Wave.Holiday is coming nearer - only two weeks to go. Before I will be on a business trip to UK from Tuesday afternoon to Friday evening. When everything goes well I have to tell an interesting story in the next Weekend Wave issue.

ENJOY READING ....

Edi's Guidepost

The LighthouseNews and information straight from the horse's mouth by Lighthouse keeper ediFanoB

QuotesThe member of the house of quotes and a quote himself the Keeper of the minutes ( we call him Kotm) fished for you

German proverbs, sayings and idioms Refuse

The Lighthouse

Dcisions, decisions. Reading is my hobby but I do not live in a vacuum. To keep it short: I read only 181 pages last week. But I kept 50% of my promise and finished on book. I do not complain because I did a lot of other things last week.

I finished

- Into the Valley of Death (ARC) by A. L. BerridgeExcellent historical fiction!Will there be a review? Yes!When? 10th of May 2012!Will you tell more? It is part of .....Why do you do that? I want to arise interest for something special on Edi's Book Lighthouse the blog while I'm on Holiday.

I'm

- 31 pages in In the Name of the King (2011) [ISBN-13: 978-0141043746] by A L BerridgeThis is the second book in the The Chevalier SeriesI hope it will continue on the same level as Honour and the Sword (review)

- 202 pages in The Alchemist of Souls [ISBN-13: 978-0857662149] by Anne LyleI wanted to finish it last week .... Anyway I like this fantasy story set in Elizabethan England a lot.

I just want to remind you that you still can take part in my latest giveaway:

The price(s):- A Smashwords Coupon Code for one copy of The Sentient Fire- Two 50% off Smashwords Coupon Codes for two copies of The Sentient FireThis giveaway is opened world wide and ends on Sunday, April 15, 2012.

To take part is simple. Click on the cover which takes you straight ahead to the review and giveaway.

Two weeks left until we go on holiday and I still have a lot to do:

- Preparing posts for the time while my wife and I are on holiday (you will not get rid of me while I'm away)

- Prepare posts for the time before holiday (Thre will be mininum four and maximum five)

- To finish my two current reads (hopefully I'm not too tired during my business trip)

- Decision what to read on holiday (DONE! Read the following passage)

Anyway I feel highly motivated to do all these things. And with such a lovely wife at my side I will achieve it.

I can tell you love moves mountains ....

From emotional point of view it is nearly impossible to decide what to read on holiday. The only way out is to look at the facts:

- We will take our Sony Reader with us. So far I have around 30 unread books stored over there. As we share the reader, it makes sense to take additionally some paperbacks with me.

- Normally I read 70 pages per day. We leave on April 29 and return on May 13. So I will count the travel days as one day. That means 14 days multiplied by 70 pages per day equals 980 pages which means two to four books depend on the length of a book.

After torturing my brain for hours I finally decided to take following four paperbacks with me:

I love to read series but I fail ofen to finish series due to manifold reasons. Do you know the Nightrunner series by Lynn Flewelling?I posted about it in October 2012 and I wrote:"I plan to return to the series in May 2012."

Traitor's Moon (pb, 1999) [ISBN-13: 978-0553577255] is the third book in the Nightrunner series and the first on my holiday list.

The story of Alec of Kerry and his mentor Seregil of Rhiminee, a spy, rogue, thief, and noble continues.

"Seregil and Alec have spent the last two years in self-imposed exile, far from their adopted homeland, Skala, and the bitter memories there. But their time of peace is shattered by a desperate summons from Queen Idrilain, asking them to aid her daughter on a mission to Aurenen, the very land from which Seregil was exiled in his youth." [Source]

Last year I read The Martian Ambassador (pb, 2011) [ISBN-13: 978-1907777-080] by Alan Baker within our holidays. Maybe this is a good omen take the second Blackwood & Harrington Mystery:The Feaster from the Stars (pb, 2011) [ISBN-13: 978-1907777-080] with me."LONDON, 1899Something strange is happening on the London Underground. The ghosts which haunt the platforms and tunnels are being seen much more frequently than usual, and it seems that they have become angry and frightened for some reason. There is, apparently, something on the network of which even the dead are afraid, and the train drivers and other staff are becoming increasingly reluctant to work there. The new atmospheric railway is being installed, and the railway companies are demanding that the mystery be solved before their investments go up in a puff of steam. When a train driver named Alfie Morgan is driven insane by something indescribable in the remote section of the network known as the Kennington Loop, Queen Victoria instructs her Bureau of Clandestine Affairs to investigate.Enter Thomas Blackwood, Special Investigator, and Lady Sophia Harrington, Secretary of the Society for Psychical Research. Along with Detective Gerhard de Chardin of the Metropolitan Templar Police and the famous occultist Simon Castaigne, Blackwood and Sophia plunge into a terrifying adventure which takes them from the dank tunnels of the London Underground to the depths of interstellar space and a dying planet known as Carcosa, where a horrific being from beyond the ordered universe has set its sights on Earth. The being is known as the King in Yellow, or the Feaster from the Stars, and unless Blackwood and Sophia can prevail, it will descend upon the Earth and consume every living thing upon it!" [Source]

Unbelievable but true there is a series where I'm only one book behind regarding reading. It is the fifth of planned seven books. That is the reason why I avoid to post the blurb.

Gates of Rome (2012) [ISBN-13:978-0141336497] by Alex Scarrow(Fifth book in the TimeRiders series. I read all the books so far and reviewed the first three books. It is a great series about time traveling. Also adults can enjoy this series.)

The last and final book is ... no historical fiction as you may have expected. I have mentioned the book three times before and that should be reason enough to take my copy of Babylon Steel (544p., pb, 2011] [ISBN-13: 978-1907992384] by Gaie Sebold with me.Mmmh, you can't remember what the book is about? At your service:

"Babylon Steel, ex-sword-for-hire, ex… other things, runs the best brothel in Scalentine; city of many portals, two moons, and a wide variety of races, were-creatures, and religions, not to mention the occasional insane warlock.She’s not having a good week. The Vessels of Purity are protesting against brothels, women in the trade are being attacked, it’s tax time, and there’s not enough money to pay the bill. So when the mysterious Darask Fain offers her a job finding a missing girl, Babylon decides to take it. But the missing girl is not what she seems, and neither is Darask Fain. In the meantime twomoon is approaching, and more than just a few night’s takings are at risk when Babylon’s hidden past reaches out to grab her by the throat." [Source]

"I never expected that I would write about someone who runs a brothel; about sex and sexuality in a fantasy setting. Heavens, I wasn't even brought up to think about such things in any setting. But there. There's probably some apt saying about this, and if I ever find it, I shall quote it." [Source]

The more I read and think about these four books the more I want to read them. In fact that means 50% less books compared to last year.I can hold them in one hand. How many pages? *piping and looking into the air* Sorry, was that a question where you expect an answer?around 1872 pages whin means 134 pages per day ....

Enjoy your weekend ....

Books

Dear readers, I'm the one to tell you about books - only books? What about novellas and other stuff? My name is Bona. I scour shelves, shops and the net for books. If you call me a book whore I would not gainsay you. But be aware I have my own, sometimes elusive taste.

I bought an electronic copy of a book in German written by a German author! That happens seldom. I share this information especially for all my readers who look for interesting reads in German. I hope this alternate reality novel is after your taste:Die Fahrt des LEVIATHAN (2012) [Kindle edition, ASIN:B007RNJMO8] by Oliver Henkel

And this is my summary of the content in English for all people who do not speak German:As I told you before, this is an alternate reality novel.1862. Amercian Civil War. Wilhelm Pfeyfer is the commander of the security department of the Prussian province Karolina which is the former South Carolina. Officially Prussia is neutral. But when The Great Eastern with the Prussian King aboard springs leak, a wheel of events is set into motion ....

The people from What Shall I Read? attended the one day shooting of the trailer and posted additional pics which you can find here and here.

You just have seen or skipped the trailer for The Bleeding Land (ebook April 26 2012, pb May 22 2012) [Kindle ASIN: B006WAIUTU; ISBN-13:978-0593066157] by which is the first book in new epic historical fiction series by Giles Kristian set in England 1642.

"England 1642: a nation divided.England is at war with itself. King Charles and Parliament each gather soldiers to their banners. Across the land men prepare to fight for their religious and political ideals. Civil war has begun.

A family ripped asunder.The Rivers are landed gentry, and tradition dictates that their allegiance is to the King. Sir Francis’ loyalty to the crown and his desire to protect his family will test them all. As the men march to war, so the women are left to defend their home against a ruthless enemy. Just as Edmund, the eldest of Sir Francis’ sons, will do his duty, so his brother Tom will turn his back on all he once believed in…

A war that will change everything.From the raising of the King’s Standard at Nottingham to the butchery and blood of Edgehill, Edmund and Tom Rivers will each learn of honour, sacrifice, hatred and betrayal as they follow their chosen paths through this most savage of wars." [Source]

There is no denying I love historical fiction as much as steampunk, epic fantasy and space opera. I will be a challenge to find the right balance on the blog.

Certainly no strangers to peculiar occurrences, agents Wellington Books and Eliza Braun are nonetheless stunned to observe a fellow passenger aboard Britain's latest hypersteam train suddenly vanish in a dazzling bolt of lightning. They soon discover this is not the only such disappearance . . . with each case going inexplicably unexamined by the Crown.

The fate of England is once again in the hands of an ingenious archivist paired with a beautiful, fearless lady of adventure. And though their foe be fiendishly clever, so then is Mr. Books . . . and Miss Braun still has a number of useful and unusual devices hidden beneath her petticoats." [Source]

Beside that there is a growing list of short stories - so far a dozen is available - set in the world of The Ministry Of Peculiar Occurrences - which cover persons and events from ministry archive.For detailed information please visit the short story department of the ministry. I need to go there soon because I do not own any of the short stories and I should find time to review the first book in the series ....

No more today, see you next week ......

Blogosphere

Hey, I'm Bona Fide. I just came back from my last foray through the blogosphere. What can you expect from me? I tell you: Everything from Art to Fart as long as there is any faint connection to books. And here is some honey from the beehive blogosphere...

It is time to direct your view to a fascinating and imaginating post over at Dark Roasted Blend. The post title gives you a hint in waht direction it goes. Be prepared for a lot of pictures when you visit

Whenever possible I try to find new book sources beside publisher catalogues and book blogs. And a few days ago I discovered the Historical Novel Society. The deliver guides to different topics and they have - most interesting for me - an archive of currently 2467 book reviews!! That will take time to comb through the archive.

That's it for today. Come back next week for more ......

Movies

Hey, it's me Fide. I'm a remote control professional. I'm that fast that I can watch two movies at the same time.But don't worry. All the stuff I present to you will be shown at normal speed.

A film for boys. Author Alex J. Cavanaugh told me he like The Cabin in The Woods mre than his wife. The film entered the cinemas in US. In Germany we have to wait until June 2012."Five friends go for a break at a remote cabin in the woods, where they get more than they bargained for. Together, they must discover the truth behind the cabin in the woods." [Source]Before you watch the trailer have a look at the official site.

That's all for today. See you next time....

QuotesI 'm the Keeper of the minutes. But I don't mind when you call me Kotm. No, no. I don't explain to you how to pronounce.

I followed the quote but it did no work. Seems I did something wrong. But I don't know what:

"Refuse to be ill. Never tell people you are ill; never own it to yourself. Illness is one of those things which a man should resist on principle.”Edward Bulwer-Lytton, English dramatist, novelist, & politician (1803 - 1873)

12 comments:

You have a lot of reading ahead of you!I thought Cabin in the Woods was great and very funny. My wife did like it but the film was 'darker' than she expected. Difficult movie to review because you can't say anything that would give away any of the plot.

Oh, Edi, I am the one who has been remiss about visiting lovely blogs like yours. It's been Cherry Blossom Festival week in Washington, D.C. We've had guest, very welcome guests, but, oh, I'm tired! Actually, you provided inspiration as I thought about all that you do and got my second wind. Thank you! No, I would never think you deserted me! And I thank you for your lovely comment. It was my lagniappe! I'll return to your blog later. Fish baking right now.

it is nearly impossible to visit all the A to Z blogs. So I selected some which I wanted to visit regularly and leave comments. But sometimes it is not possible to do that. I will try to read the posts I miss this week within next week.

Thank you for your kind words. I appreciate your informative and inspiring A to Z posts.

Hi Edi,Another great post. I do hope you enjoy your holiday and preparing for time away. Tell me you will be doing things other than READ? I always take books away with me and often not find time to stop and read them. Too much to do and too exhausted at the end of the day!Looks like you will be inspired though, by your choice. Enjoy!

reading is just one part of the holiday.There will be long walks along the beach and the promenade. We will visit the Polish town Swinemünde for one day. The forenoon we will spend at the beach in our rented roofed wicker beach chair.

As I wrote I will be happy when I read two books within the two weeks.

You forgot to mention the titles of the books you will carry to the UK trip on your e-reader! ;)

These books look great by content, but the covers... I have a little "low-budget-feeling" if I look into the Traitor's Moon or Babylon Steel.

Last year I read a book from Giles Kristian, the first book of his viking saga. It wasn't so bad, but characters were too epic. A mystical boy with strange eyes, parents unknown, last survivor, full of cliches...

to be honest my e-reader stayed at home. I took just two real books with me which I want to finish before my holiday.

Covers are always a tricky thing.I can assure you that Lynn Flewelling is an established author. Did you recognize that Traitor's Moon has been published in 1999 ? At this time covers looked different.And as I wrote it is the third book in a series which means I liked the first two books.

The cover of Babylon Steel is not just about the limit. In the meantime I read several reviews and it seems the coveris more hiding than revealing. And the story is not a dark and gritty one.